


The Ball

by RainbowSerenity



Series: Royal AU [5]
Category: Final Fantasy XIII
Genre: Alternate Universe - Royalty, Dancing, F/F, F/M, First Kiss, Kissing, Modern Royalty, Royalty, The Ball, finally tho
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-29
Updated: 2017-11-29
Packaged: 2019-02-08 06:05:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,733
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12858369
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RainbowSerenity/pseuds/RainbowSerenity
Summary: Finally, it's time for Lightning's introduction ball to announce her as the long-lost Princess of Eden. It's completely nerve-wracking and over-the-top, like most of these events are. Not that she'd been to many...Funny how her personal bodyguard always shows up at the right time...





	The Ball

**Author's Note:**

> if you're here from tumblr, this version's a little different...see if you can spot the differences lol

One of the first things Lightning had been taught regarding her newly royal status was that when it came to parties and dinner engagements, she was never late. Everyone else was simply early.

Of course, she’d tried to argue that that made no sense in the context of her introduction ball since there were a bunch of other royals there, but Sazh had just sighed in that exasperated fashion of his that suggested she was taking years off of his life and told her to hush.

If only she had such an opportunity tonight.

Ever since she’d been found as the long-lost princess of the kingdom of Eden, Lightning had been largely kept away from the public. She knew that the press offices occasionally released photos to ensure the people that she, well, _existed,_ but that was the extent of it. She’d yet to make any sort of contact with other kingdoms or establish what kind of ruler she would be.

And yet somehow, Sazh had thought it was a completely _brilliant_ idea to figuratively throw her out to the tigers and have her put mere months of royal training to the test, when the people she’d be talking with had been royal their whole lives.

Well, she supposed that she’d been royal her whole life, too. She just hadn’t known it until a little while ago.

Lightning tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear and then dropped her hand, trying not to fuss. She was standing behind a set of double doors, waiting for someone to announce her. Already she could hear voices murmuring, probably enjoying the party.

Of course _they_ all would. _They_ weren’t the ‘guest of honor.’ Ugh.

“Ladies and gentlemen, our esteemed guests from far and wide!”

Had she been able to run in these shoes, Lightning would’ve made a break for it. After months, it was somehow just _now_ hitting her that she’d gone from a mere soldier just barely above the poverty line to an actual _princess_ who was soon to be in charge of a whole kingdom and who guarded what was arguably the most important fal'cie in the _world._ How the hell was she going to pull this off?!

_Some things in life you just do._

“Presenting tonight’s guest of honor, Eden’s long-lost daughter – Her Royal Highness, Crown Princess Lightning Farron!”

Heaven forbid they just say 'Princess Lightning’ or something.

Instead of running like she wanted to, Lightning squared her shoulders and stood up straight, her head held high as the double doors opened and she stepped into the glitz of the ballroom.

She was a floor above everyone, so it was all too easy to see the eyes staring up at her. Honestly, she hoped she wasn’t blinding them with her ensemble, though she had to admit, it was quite a work of art.

Her gown was a light blue color (the color a certain personal bodyguard had said matched her eyes…no, _wrong_ time to think of that) with a sweetheart neckline. There was delicate lace embroidery in the back the detailed the brand of Phoenix, Eden’s fal'cie. The skirt was full, made possible by way too many layers of fabric, though the top layer was covered with a gauzy sort of fabric in a peplum style until the hem, which was embedded with a repeating design of Phoenix’s brand in hundreds of tiny diamonds on the top layer.

Of course, that hadn’t been enough. Her hair had been done in a sort of reverse crown braid – the braid was at the nape of her neck rather than the top of her head – and the few stubborn pieces of hair that escaped had been expertly curled. Nestled at the top of her head and held in by what felt like a pound of hairpins was a brilliant diamond and sapphire tiara – one that was traditionally worn at introduction balls like this. In fact, when her maids had been putting the tiara on, Lightning had recalled with a shiver of seeing previous princesses wearing the same one.

She was wearing a minimum amount of jewelry to better show off the tiara and gown, but there were tiny diamond and sapphire earrings hanging from her ears and her elbow-length gloves shimmered. Honestly, the earrings alone were probably worth more than her entire career as a soldier in the slums.

It was still difficult to think that she deserved to wear any of this.

Lightning gave a little wave and curtsy, the way that’d been drilled into her head a thousand times. Everyone started applauding politely as she began to descend down the grand staircase. It was really unnerving to have all those eyes on her, especially since she was walking so slowly in an attempt not to trip.

Once she was finally at the bottom of the stairs she let out a breath and put on a practiced smile. The 'media smile’, it was called. After all, a princess needed to look calm and composed at all times.

“Thank you all for your support tonight,” she said. The voice didn’t really feel like hers. It was coming out of her mouth, sure, but it just felt like another media trick. Probably because this was the part of the ball that would show up in magazines and the internet. “I welcome you to join me in bringing Eden into a new era. Phoenix will continue to light the skies and all of us under its light will continue to thrive in return.”

There was polite applause and the rigidity in Lightning’s shoulders loosened somewhat. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Sazh wipe imaginary sweat off his brow. She could absolutely relate.

The hardest part was over. Now…she just had to get through the rest of the night.

Sigh.

After her little speech, everyone gradually fell into murmured conversations and there was that pleasant buzz that seemed to always accompany successful gatherings…not that Lightning had been to very many, but it was easy to sense.

Sazh scurried up to her before she could take a step. “You know what you’ve gotta do now, right?”

“Take off these stupid shoes and run back to my room?”

“Don’t give me a heart attack. Go and _mingle._ Relations! Put all that damn paperwork I gave you to use!”

“Right.” This was the part she’d been dreading, even more than the hardest part of being put on display and speaking to the crowd. She’d never been all that great at small talk and even after extensively going through paperwork describing the other royals and nobles that would be at this ball, she was sure she’d screw up and unintentionally offend somebody.

Or maybe _intentionally._ Who knew, maybe some of these people could use a good social faux-pas.

Her eyes wandered as she walked through the crowds, consciously aware of her tiny steps. Between the heels and how elaborate her dress was, every second was a test of not tripping. Ridiculous.

She scanned the crowds, looking for a pair of green eyes and a mop of silver hair. Hope – her personal bodyguard – had been invited specifically by her, and despite some…tense moments between them, she did genuinely hope that he’d still taken her up on her invitation.

Yeah, _tense_ , she thought with a sigh. The last time they’d been left alone in a room together, he’d almost kissed her. _Tense_ was one word for it.

“So you’re Eden’s princess, huh?”

Lightning turned around and saw a woman with wild black hair smirking at her curiously. She was dressed in a deep blue outfit, where the top half resembled a sari, but the bottom was a more traditional gown. The dress was adorned with intricate embroidery that Lightning was aware was the symbol of a fal'cie, though hell if she could remember which one. Tons of bracelets and necklaces completed the look.

“Yes,” she finally replied with a bob of her head, aware that she’d been staring a second too long. “Princess Fang of Oerba, correct?”

“No need for the formality, sunshine.” Fang grinned and took a sip of the champagne flute she was holding. “If there’s no cameras on us, no point in it.”

Lightning couldn’t help but smile. She liked Fang already. “All things considered, I should probably err on the side of caution.” As much as she hated it.

“Suit yourself. Want one?”

“Sure.” Lightning took the proffered champagne and took a tiny sip. It tasted way too expensive, but considering all the diamonds she was wearing, she shouldn’t have been surprised. “Have you been to Eden often?”

“Last time was right before the last of the royal family croaked.” Fang shrugged one shoulder. “Though I guess technically they’re _your_ family, too.”

Lightning paused. She honestly hadn’t really thought of it like that before. “Technically, I guess. They’re _very_ distant, though. Nobody knew about me until Sazh decided to poke around.”

Fang barked out a laugh. “Of course it was him! He’s good at that, eh?”

“You know Sazh?”

“Any royal that’s got half a brain to speak of knows him.” Fang lifted her glass a bit as though in a toast. “Of course, he’s long since settled in Eden, but he’s coached all sorts of us over the years. The guy’s constantly grumblin’ about us 'kids’.”

Lightning’s smile widened a bit. “Sounds like him.”

“He’s just pissed 'cause Vanille decided she’d rather spend time with me rather than get schooled by him.” She finished her champagne. “Speakin’ of which…”

“Vanille?” She didn’t mean…

“Oi! Vanille!”

A girl in a beautiful gown in colors of the sunrise suddenly appeared with a wide smile on her face. She had a bounce to her step despite the elaborate headdress she was wearing, which was dripping with gold pieces stamped with the symbol of Luxerion’s fal'cie. Like Fang, she wore an alarming number of necklaces and bracelets.

Recognition quickly dawned and Lightning couldn’t hide her wide eyes. This was Dia Vanille – one of the royals her bodyguard had worked with…and claimed to knew quite well.

Damnit. Where _was_ he, then, to coach her through this?

“Fang!” Vanille grinned and flung her arms around the other woman Lightning quirked an eyebrow when the hug turned into a kiss.

Wait. What?

“What, nobody ever mentioned that?” Fang said with a smirk when she noticed Lightning’s confused expression. “There’s a reason the old royal family used to call me an 'old hag’ for not being married. They were sorta prissy about it.”

“Oh.” Lightning blinked and shook her head a bit. “Well…I have no reason to be.” And that was the truth. She herself wasn’t attracted to women, so what the hell did it matter to her if Fang and Vanille were together? Had the old royal family honestly had a problem with it? The thought of being associated with such an archaic idea made her uncomfortable.

“Knew I’d like ya.” Fang grinned and kissed Vanille again. “Sweetheart, don’t be rude and say hello to the new princess.”

Even though Sazh probably would’ve had a heart attack if he’d heard something like that, Lightning just chuckled as Vanille turned with a bright smile and held up her hands in a strange gesture – pinky fingers crossed and her index fingers touching as she bowed. Lightning curtsied in return.

“It’s so nice to finally meet you!” Vanille grasped Lightning’s hands, which took her by surprise, but all she could do was go with it. Plus, she could tell by instinct that Vanille was a good person. Her opinion had absolutely nothing to do with the fact that Hope apparently knew her quite well. “I’ve been wanting to meet Eden’s new princess ever since I heard about you! It’s a terrible shame that so much of the royal family perished, but…well, you’re here now, aren’t you?”

“Right.” Lightning’s head was spinning. She was starting to get the vibe that most of the royals around here hadn’t cared much for the old family that had ruled over Eden and inwardly cursed herself for not paying much attention to the news when she was younger.

Then again, she’d been too busy trying to keep a roof over her head.

“Plus, I just love a good ball, don’t you? It’s so old-fashioned.” Vanille grinned as the music from the live orchestra gradually changed. “Oh, Fang! Dance with me!”

Fang chuckled. “Can’t disobey an order.” She winked as Vanille tugged her out to the dance floor. “We’ll talk later, eh?”

“Right,” Lightning echoed and watched as they scurried further into the ballroom. Somehow, Vanille’s bouncing became a lot more graceful as they began to waltz, their gowns sweeping around them in perfect unison.

Eventually, she looked away and let out a breath. Okay. She’d met two of the most important guests here and it actually hadn’t been too bad. The rest of the night would be a piece of cake. Practice made perfect, after all, or so Sazh was constantly harping at her. Probably why he made her repeat etiquette lessons constantly.

“Hel-loooo. Princess Lightning, right?”

Lightning turned and looked up – and _up_ – at an unfamiliar tall man with shaggy blond hair, dressed in a dark suit. It was precisely at this second that she remembered Sazh telling her that these introduction balls were typically held to look for potential suitors.

“Yes,” she finally replied with a curtsy, though she was already a little annoyed. _Obviously_ that’s who she was – or had this guy missed the whole little parade-and-speech earlier?

“Snow Villiers,” he introduced with a bow. “I’m the Patron of Yusnaan.”

She raised her eyebrows a little. Even she knew about Yusnaan – it was the only nation with a fal'cie that wasn’t under any sort of formal rule. Snow had been elected by the people, but he wasn’t bound to the duty. The only reason Yusnaan got away with this was because their fal'cie, Pandaemonium, was in charge of a lot of the industry and food production in that area of the world, which created tons of jobs for the people. It was a notorious situation that was unlike any other, but despite this, she hadn’t heard much about the Patron himself.

Honestly, she already wasn’t all that impressed.

Still, she had to be polite. Relations and all that. “Nice to meet you.”

“Likewise.” He grinned, and it was the sort of expression someone had when they were trying way too hard to be charming. She resisted the urge to roll her eyes. “Would you care for a dance?”

Oh, crap.

She knew there were cameras in the room to take press photos, and she’d been warned more than once that several would probably be taken while she was on the dance floor – it just _looked_ more interesting for the princess to be dancing or doing something instead of standing around chatting. On top of that, it’d also been heavily implied that whoever she was photographed dancing with would create 'human interest,’ meaning people would jump to romantic conclusions.

Of course, never mind that she’d never met any of these people in person before, nor did she have any intention of getting romantically involved with _anyone_ unless they happened to be her personal bodyguard -

Wait.

She inwardly shook herself. Obviously, the press would make whatever the hell comments it wanted, regardless of her actions. Better that they get their photos out of the way now, right?

“I would be honored,” Lightning finally replied, using the words that’d been drilled into her head. Snow offered his arm with a too-charming grin that had zero effect on her, but she took the crook of his elbow anyway.

The music had flowed into something a bit more upbeat, so it was easy to distract herself with counting steps and remembering where the hell her hands were supposed to go. It was awkward, because she was so used to dancing with someone shorter, who she didn’t have to race to keep up with and could lead instead…

_Gods._ What the hell was wrong with her?

Even though Snow was a big lug who had zero grace and kept nearly stepping on her gown, she somehow managed to keep a pleasant smile on her face the whole time they waltzed, if only for the cameras. She spotted Fang and Vanille – who were still dancing – out of the corner of her eye and they seemed amused for some reason.

“Eden’s real lucky they found you,” Snow said at one point. “But man, I can’t imagine living all normally and then suddenly getting thrust into this.”

She hummed in agreement. It occurred to her that Snow was probably the only person here who could somewhat relate to her, since he’d been elected to his position. It was a frightening thought that she had anything in common with the guy. “I suppose,” she finally said. “I’m just glad this means I get to give my sister a better life.”

“You have a sister?”

How was it that she’d been required to memorize a bunch of facts about these visiting royals and important people, but they apparently hadn’t had to do the same? Or maybe Snow just didn’t care. “Yes. She’s around here somewhere. They’re just putting the spotlight on me for obvious reasons.”

“Can I meet her?”

That surprised her, but Lightning was so eager to stop dancing that she immediately agreed. “Sure.”

Once the dance was over, she led Snow into a crowd of guests. She thought she’d spotted her sister here earlier…

“Serah?”

“Sis!” Serah, always a lot more personable, gracefully extracted herself from a five-person conversation and went up to Lightning, grasping her hands excitedly. “Light, you look so beautiful in that dress. Those seamstresses really outdid themselves!”

“Thank you.” She smiled, maybe her first genuine one of the night. “You look beautiful too, Serah.” And she did. Serah’s hair was free from its usual side ponytail and had been swept up into an elaborately braided bun at the top of her head. A few tendrils around her face had been curled to perfection. The updo perfectly showed off the glitzy pastel pink gown she was wearing. Like her sister’s, it also had lace embroidery on the back with the symbol of Phoenix.

“You’re just saying that,” Serah teased, but she looked happy all the same. Finally, she seemed to notice Snow and looked up. _Way_ up. Snow was easily twice the size of her tiny sister. “And you are…?”

Snow grinned, but unlike Lightning, Serah practically swooned at it. “My name is Snow Villiers. I’m the Patron of Yusnaan.” He made a grand, sweeping bow. “It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance.”

Serah giggled and immediately dropped into a curtsy. “The pleasure is all mine, Mr. Villiers. I’m Serah Farron, Princess of Eden.”

Even though it was completely uncouth, Lightning’s mouth fell open as Snow and Serah giggled throughout their pleasantries, which eventually turned into a request for a dance – a much more enthusiastic one on Snow’s part – and she stared, totally flabbergasted as Snow and Serah waltzed across the dance floor. It looked completely ridiculous because of their height difference, but…

“Excuse me, Your Highness?”

Only a lifetime of training as soldier kept Lightning from jumping out of her skin. Instead, she sucked in a quick breath and put on a smile as she turned to the voice. Standing there was a girl who was dressed in what looked more like a uniform than a ballgown, though it was formal enough. She didn’t look familiar, so Lightning simply nodded.

“Yes?”

“My name is Alyssa,” the girl said after a quick bow. “I’m her a representative of Academia. The President sends his regrets that he couldn’t make an appearance.”

“Oh.” Lightning vaguely recalled Sazh saying that Academia’s President hadn’t replied to the invitation to the ball, but she hadn’t really thought to question it. Academia was a relatively new nation. They boasted the world’s only man-made fal'cie, which honestly just seemed _crazy_ , but she hadn’t given it much thought, though there was _something_ about the information that nagged at the back of her mind. She knew that Hope was from the Academy, but...

But the leader, their President, was a person shrouded in mystery. It was speculated that there _wasn’t_ a President at all, because nobody had ever seen the guy. Or girl.

Therefore, it hadn’t been such a surprise that there hadn’t been an answer to the invitation, and beyond that, Lightning hadn’t really had time to muse about it. After all, she wasn’t about to rule Academia, so what business was it of hers?

A second later, she reminded herself of appearances. “Please send my regards to him. It’d be great to meet someday.”

Alyssa seemed amused at this, but she simply nodded. “Of _course,_ Your Highness. In fact, if I could be so bold, he didn’t think much of the old royals. He might finally be willing to show himself to the public if Academia and Eden decided to ally.”

Ugh. Politics. Still, Lightning’s smile didn’t falter. “We’ll have to see, but I’m definitely open to the idea.”

“Good to hear!” Alyssa said. She opened her mouth like she was going to say more, but she flicked her eyes to something in the distance and instead bowed again. “Well then, thank you for your time, Your Highness. I should be off.”

“Nice to meet you.” Lightning sighed as Alyssa walked off. Gods, this was exhausting.

“Are you all right, Your Highness?”

Lightning’s head whipped over her should and she spun around at the familiar voice, her smile immediately forming into something much more genuine. Despite the awkwardness of the last time they’d been alone together, right now, she’d never been so glad to see a familiar face.

“Hope,” she greeted with a smirky smile, her dress rustling as she stepped up to him. “What have I told you a thousand times? Call me Light.”

“I thought formality would be a little more appropriate here.” His eyes flicked over her appearance. “You look…”

Even before he said the word, a blush formed on Lightning’s face that had nothing to do with any makeup. It wasn’t the first time he’d said anything like this to her. Hell, it wasn’t the first time tonight that anyone had said such a thing, but coming from him…

“…Absolutely stunning.”

…It was different.

“T-Thank you,” she managed to reply, cursing her little stutter as she tried not to let the mood get…awkward. After all, they were in a ballroom with dozens of people, not to mention cameras. “You look…very nice yourself.”

That was putting it mildly. Though Hope always dressed in a neat and professional manner as her personal bodyguard, apparently he went the extra mile at a ball. His three-piece suit was perfectly tailored, like it’d been painted on his body, and his aqua tie brought out the brilliant shades of green in his eyes.

Her heart was pounding. Not good.

If she wasn’t mistaken, Hope’s cheeks flushed at her praise, but he merely cleared his throat. “Thank you.”

The silence that followed was both awkward and comfortable in that way she usually was around Hope. It didn’t matter that they were in a ballroom full of people and that she was guest of honor all eyes were on. The world always dwindled down to just the two of them when they were together.

How?

“Your Highness!”

Lightning was startled out of her stupor when someone called for her, and somehow, she found herself away from Hope’s side for the next few hours. She talked to one of the noblemen of the Yaschas Massif and then danced with the Primarch’s son, who was even taller than Snow. At least the guy was quiet and courteous. Perhaps because the Primarch worked so closely with the monarchy of Eden.

Fang and Vanille came to talk to her again to rescue her from a long conversation with a guest, and honestly, she was glad for it. If nothing else, she could say that she’d made friends of the two women. While that was good for relations and all, Lightning had never really been all that close to other people, whether she was a princess or not, so it was nice that there were people who sought her company.

When the peak of the ball had inexplicably passed, made obvious by the fact that the cameras were finally gone, Lightning watched Fang and Vanille go back to the dance floor. Serah was _still_ off with Snow somewhere, which almost made her want to go pry them apart, but Lightning was glad for a moment alone to breathe.

That moment didn’t last too long, but at least this time, the interruption was welcome.

“There you are, Light.”

She smiled as Hope appeared beside her. “I’m sorry about before.”

He shook his head. “Don’t worry about it. I know what this event was about. It’s important for you to mingle and make relations.”

“I’ve had about enough of that tonight,” she admitted. She was ridiculously glad that these balls weren’t an everyday affair, because the thought of schmoozing and socializing like this constantly gave her a headache. Maybe she had a bit of confidence in the political side of things, but the social aspects of being Eden’s princess…ugh.

“Does that mean you’re free from the rest of your obligations tonight?”

“Unless Sazh decides to spring something else on me.”

Hope chuckled, shifting where he was standing. He seemed weirdly nervous…at least until he turned to her and bowed at the waist. “Then will you please do me the honor of a dance?”

Lightning blinked in surprise. Hope wanted to dance with her? Why?

Okay, she did recall one of their dance lessons, and according to Sazh, they’d been totally coordinated. The orchestra was still playing and there were still people on the dance floor. It wasn’t totally out of the realm of possibility that Hope would want to dance with her.

Maybe he wanted to try and…

No, of course not. Their almost-kiss had been a total fluke. Despite evidence to the contrary, she’d completely acknowledged it and moved on. This was just a princess dancing with her bodyguard.

With that thought, Lightning gave him a little smile and held out her hand. “I would be honored.”

Hope looked just as surprised at her acceptance, but he quickly took her hand and led her out onto the dance floor with a little smile. Maybe it was just because she’d been waltzing all night, but the placement of their hands were perfectly in sync – automatic, like she’d done this with him a thousand times before. The music began a simple ballad and they began to spin around the room, her dress glittering in the light of the chandeliers hanging from the ceiling.

After a moment, Hope relaxed even further and chuckled sheepishly. “I have to admit, I wasn’t sure if you’d agree to dance.”

Lighting smirked, squeezing his hand a bit. “I promised you one awhile ago, did I?”

“…You did,” he answered slowly, recalling a memory. “But you’ve been with so many others tonight. I wasn’t sure if you’d be up for it.”

Even though it was the sort of kind and courteous thing a bodyguard would say, there was something in Hope’s tone that made her search his eyes for what he wasn’t quite saying. Maybe it was from all these months of royal training, teaching her to look people in the eye and find what was beyond the surface, but it eventually came to her.

“Wait a minute…were you jealous?”

Hope cleared his throat and ducked his head a bit like he needed to watch his feet, which was stupid since they were waltzing together so beautifully. Lightning couldn’t help but smile with a slight smirk, since his lack of verbal reply was more than answer enough.

After a couple more spins around the ballroom, he finally spoke. “I wouldn’t say _that_ , exactly. I…I simply remembered that you’d promised me a dance and I was hoping I’d get to take you up on your offer.” He looked at her from behind his bangs. “That’s all.”

That _wasn’t_ all and they both knew it. Even though she kept trying to push it out of her mind for both of their sakes, her mind again drifted to their almost-kiss. Her eyes flickered down to his lips without realizing it, and not for the first time, she wondered what it would feel like to finally have them meet hers.

Of course, usually when she had this stupidly girly daydream, she was alone in her room, which meant that she had to snap out of it. Now!

She forced herself to meet his eyes. “I wouldn’t leave my personal bodyguard hanging.”

Her words brought a brilliant smile to his face and they fell even more in sync as the music swelled and got a bit faster, bringing joy to their steps in a way she hadn’t felt all night. She felt as light as air as Hope spun her around, occasionally letting her take the lead since that was her instinct. The fact that he let her without question spoke volumes of how well he knew her.

Or maybe just how often he’d worked with her. He _was_ her personal bodyguard, after all, but then why didn’t this feel like a bodyguard-and-charge dance? How was he – and not the palace, gowns, tiaras, or hoard of servants -  making her feel like an actual _princess_ for the first time since she’d found out about her royal blood?

Maybe because, despite the friendliness of most of the other royals here, he was the only one who seemed to truly believe that she could do the job and be _better_ at it.

If it weren’t for her stupid shoes, she honestly felt as though she could’ve danced with him all night. As it was, she still wasn’t entirely used to being on her feet in heels for so long. Seriously, nobody could see her feet, so why couldn’t she have worn something more comfortable?

Lightning squeezed Hope’s hand to get his attention. Even though he was staring right at her, he looked a bit dazed. She couldn’t help but wonder if her expression was the same. “Can we stop? My feet are killing me.”

“Of course.” He carefully guided her away from the rest of the people waltzing – she saw Serah and Snow out of the corner of her eye, hmph – with a grace that she didn’t really expect from a bodyguard.

Then again, he’d been surprising her since they day they’d met.

“Would you like to sit, Your Highness?”

She rolled her eyes. “Seriously? A few dances and you’re going all formal on me again?”

He smiled. “Light. May I escort you to a seat?”

“Now you’re just being ridiculous.” Impulsively, she flicked his forehead, immediately regretting the action since that was _definitely_ not protocol.

Thankfully, he only blinked a few times before smiling again and offering her his arm. “Well?”

“I think I just need to rest a minute.” How many hours had gone by, anyway? Sazh had mentioned offhand that the most splendid balls could have people dancing until dawn. She shuddered at the thought. “Can we go somewhere quiet?”

“Of course.”

Maybe it was from all the champagne that’d been served all night, but everybody seemed too buzzed to notice the guest of honor basically escaping the party. Hope led her to a hidden hallway off in a corner of the room, which further led to a door that opened up to the balcony.

She inhaled deeply as they walked outside, glad for the fresh air. The music and hubbub seemed very far away. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” Hope wandered behind her, his hands behind his back as they always seemed to be when they were around each other.

She gestured to his formal stance. “You can relax a little. It’s just us.”

Hope smiled a bit sheepishly – and handsomely, can’t forget that – and let his arms fall to his sides. “Sorry. Force of habit.”

“Like forgetting to call me 'Light’?”

“Exactly.”

They chuckled. She felt more relaxed than she had in ages. Her eyes wandered over the dark, star-studded sky and she grasped the railing of the balcony as though afraid of falling. The world seemed so _big_ at that moment. It was hard to believe that she mattered so much in the grand scheme of things – that princesses went down in history books, while the families that did just as much or even more got no recognition at all.

And how many families like that were there? More than there was royalty, of course. If she squinted, she could just barely make out the area where she and Serah had grown up. Further off were the slums, where they’d been forced to live when money got tight.

So many hundreds and thousands of people lived like that, and yet, because she just happened to be from the right bloodline, she was plucked from it all. It didn’t seem fair that there were people struggling to survive while she was literally wearing a dress covered in diamonds.

“Light?”

Only a lot of self-control kept her from jumping in surprise. “Yes?”

“You look lost in thought.” Hope approached her a bit cautiously to finally stand beside her. “Are you all right?”

“I was just…thinking about the last time we talked.” And almost kissed, but no need to acknowledge that. Again.

It may have been her imagination, but she could’ve sworn Hope held his breath before responding. “You have?”

“About how I could use my experience to help.” He visibly relaxed at her words. “It just…it seems like such a huge undertaking. I wouldn’t even know where to start.”

“At the beginning.”

She rolled her eyes. “I doubt it’s that easy.”

“Probably not,” he agreed. “But everything has a beginning.”

“I guess.” The words were pretty generic, but still, he had a point. “I just hope that I can do anything at all. A lot of people I’ve spoken to tonight apparently didn’t like the old royal family that much.”

If this surprised Hope, he hid it well. Maybe he hadn’t liked them, either. “Really.”

“Yes.” Lightning glanced back up at the stars. The moon that followed Phoenix was just a sliver in the sky. “And when I was working as a solider, we didn’t really talk about the royals. They were a world away. Even though they made our laws and everything, it felt like nothing they did ever actually affected us.”

“But you know they did,” Hope pointed out. “And like I said, you’ve seen both sides. I think that’ll eventually come to be your biggest strength.”

She’d known ever since he’d said as much during their last private conversation that he was right. Her empathy towards those who were down in life – it wasn’t anything any of Eden’s previous royals seemed to have. Maybe that was a reason they seemed to be so disliked by a lot of the other kingdoms.

“It’s a lot to take in,” she finally said. “Even though it’s been awhile since I was crowned and everything, I don’t think it’s all really hit me yet.” She never would have admitted this to anyone else, but Hope was different. He’d been different from the start.

Though with how much she’d been rambling about her _feelings_ around him, she still hadn’t discerned if this was a good or bad thing.

“Of course not. It’s a big change, especially when they do something like this.” Hope made a sweeping gesture in the general direction of the ballroom. “I don’t think gatherings for soldiers in the Corps were quite so…”

“Expensive?”

“I was going to say 'elegant,’ but yes, that too.”

Lightning smirked, finally looking away from the sky to face him, though to her surprise, Hope was already staring at her. Had he been looking at her this whole time? There was something strangely intense in his gaze – something she’d felt since the moment they’d met, but hadn’t wanted to put a name to until now.

_Desire._

She’d already halfway closed the space between them by the time he was leaning in, and she tugged on his tie for good measure, an anchor to hold onto when their lips finally met.

He held on tightly, his fingers clinging to the fabric of her gown. Even though the kiss was strangely soft, there was an untapped passion simmering between them that she could feel as though it was tangible. She’d never felt anything like it before…not that she had much experience to compare this to.

Maybe it was instinct. That was the one rule in life she always followed – to trust her instincts. And if her instincts wanted her to part her lips so the kiss could deepen? No way in hell was she about to disobey.

Hope’s hands felt like they were burning on her body. She could feel every touch, every movement of his fingertips as he traced the lace on her back, every little twitch as he pulled her even closer. Her hands mussed his perfectly coiffed hair, just _begging_ for something to hold onto. For a second, she contemplated on taking off the stupid elbow-length gloves she was wearing, but that probably required breaking the kiss and she was incredibly reluctant to do such a thing.

_Gods,_ kissing him was like nothing she’d ever experienced before. It didn’t even compare to, say, suddenly becoming the princess of the kingdom you’d lived in your whole life. This was far more intense. Lightning had never been a particularly romantic person or someone who bought into the whole idea that someone could be your other half, but with Hope, all of those weird ideas felt like an actual reality.

And it was all of this from just a _kiss._

Okay, so it was a lot of kisses. But even so…

Eventually, one of them pulled away – she honestly couldn’t tell who, since she was already so lightheaded – and she resisted the urge to reconnect their lips as they both quietly gasped for air. All of this was _completely_ unlike her. Maybe it was just the stress from everything catching up with her. Yeah. Except not.

“Light…” Hope murmured, his eyes only half-open. Clearly, he was just as dazed as she was. “Light, I…”

“Yes?” Her voice was husky in a way that she hadn’t even known she’d been capable of.

Something about it, however, seemed to snap Hope out of his daze. He suddenly gasped and they flew apart, his eyes wide with something akin to panic, which was strange in itself since she’d never seen him look anything but calm and collected.

“I…I’m sorry,” he said, not quite looking at her. She could’ve sworn he was trying to avoid staring at her lips. “I can’t.”

“What?”

Hope stammered out something unintelligible, but before Lightning could even think to get him to elaborate, he turned and went back inside.

Years of training instantly kicked in and she followed, calling out his name and demands for him to wait, just _wait_ a minute, but either Hope was way faster than she’d given him credit for or he was using some secret passage that nobody had told her about yet. When she finally made her way back to the ballroom, Hope had completely vanished.

And he hadn’t even left a shoe behind.

Lightning had no idea how long she stood there, just staring into the crowd like it was going to give her an answer, but eventually, someone touched her arm and brought her mind back from wandering.

“Sis?”

“Serah?” Thank goodness it was her and not anybody else. Except Hope. Hope would’ve been preferable, and she hated herself for thinking that.

“Are you okay?” Serah cocked her head a little. “You look tired. Come sit down with me, okay?”

“All right.” Lightning let Serah lead her around, not even wondering how her sister managed to extract herself from the Patron’s side or if there was something else going on. There was only one person on her mind, and now, one question.

Why had Hope pulled away?

Or more importantly…

Would he return?

**Author's Note:**

> I'm on [tumblr](http://rainbowserenity.tumblr.com)~


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